Emotional goodbye as tens of thousands of mourners queue to pay respects to man 'who touched lives' and took first vital steps in peace process

The remains of former Taoiseach, Dr Garret FitzGerald leave the Mansion House

P
resident Mary McAleese and taoiseach Enda Kenny joined the family of the late Dr Garret FitzGerald for his removal to a packed Donnybrook church last night. Members of government, the judiciary and academia were joined by hundreds of Dubliners in saying farewell to the former taoiseach.

Fr Martin Clarke, parish priest of Donnybrook, said an extraordinary week had begun, quite properly, with saturation coverage of the visit of Queen Elizabeth to Ireland and ended with saturation coverage of FitzGerald’s life and work. So many superlatives had been used to describe him that people were beginning to run out of words, “something that would never happen to Garret”, he said.

Eamon Gilmore, Michael Noonan, Alan Shatter, Joan Burton and Frances FitzGerald were among the cabinet members in attendance along with Micheál Martin, the Fianna Fail leader, and his chief whip Seán Ó Fearghaíl. Former taoisigh and Fine Gael leaders John Bruton and